Saw
reviewed by Brian "the Naked Gun" Felts & Benn "Where's the Humanity?" Farrell

This movie was amazing! I can not believe that so few people have gone to see it that it is about to get pulled from the movie theaters. When it goes to DVD and everybody rents it, people we be upset with themselves that they did not go see it in the movie theater.

I am not going to talk about the story because I don't want to give anything away. The movie itself is not the same caliber as Silence of the Lambs, or Seven. However, it is by far the best thing that has come out in years and is much better then any of the Lamb sequels and also the movies that came out this year, Taking Lives, and Suspect Zero to name a few.

The two main stars Carey Elwes (The Princess Bride, Kiss the Girls) and Leigh Wannell (Matrix Reloaded) do a terrific job of telling the story. Other actors of note are Danny Glover (Lethal Weapon 1-4,) Monica Potter (Patch Adams, Along Came a Spider) and Michael Emerson (For Love of the Game.)

Go see this before it leaves the movie theater it is worth the $7.25 if there is such a movie. If you miss it, be sure to pick it up on DVD. It is a great movie, and you won't be disappointed.

Brian - the Naked Gun

I will go into the story a bit if Brian won't.

"Saw" begins with two guys waking up in this disgusting warehouse bathroom chained on opposite sides of the room to the plumbing. They can't remember how they got there and spend the rest of the movie figuring how, why they're in the situation and who put them there. In addition, they have to figure out why the body of a man who shot himself in the head is laying between them.

Eventually, Dr. Lawrence Gordon, played by Elwes, one of those in this unusual situation thinks back a couple months and figures out who must be behind the scheme, a serial criminal naked the "Jigsaw Killer." Now me saying that makes the movie sounds like another hoakey serial killer movie, but trust me, it isn't. The picture is about these trapped men and the determination of the human soul. All right, that's a little deep.

Yes, the picture can be compared to "Seven." However, I feel it is far better than "Seven," since the ending of "Seven" did NOT live up to the strengths of scenes preceding it. "Saw" holds the same style, but it is far more consistent and its ending is the picture's GREATEST strength.

The story of "Saw" surpasses its medium. What I mean by that is, it can be told effectively in many mediums besides film. "Saw" could have easily been performed on stage and still blow people's hair back if it kept the same ending.

We have several great performances in the picture as Brian stated and named those involved. However, the strength of the picture is in its writing, credited to director James Wan and scriptwriter Leigh Wannell, who plays Elwes cellmate. Brian and I saw this picture together and litterally looked at each other when it ended with our mouths agape. We were solidly enthralled from the first scene to the last frame, emoting phrases like, "That was so fucking awesome!"

When you hear the press' cliché "surprise hit of the year," "Saw" is what I will think of when I think of the surprise hit of 2004.

The movie was very well thought out, extremely well paced and well staged. That's more than I can say for half the pictures I've seen in the last two years.

I also appreciate how director Wan made his picture about the phsycology of the situation and not the horror of its extremities. Director Sam Raimi, created of the "Evil Dead" franchise, once stated "terror movies are psychological, while horror movies are biological."

Horror movies are about the blood, while terror movies are about the mind. "Saw" is a perfect analysis for this statement. It is NOT a horror picture, and definitely more cerebral than most anything in its genre. Please see it in the theaters if you get a chance. If you dig psycho thrillers, this will become one of your favorites. I promise you.

Benn - Where's the Humanity?